What is your marketing message?

The Electric Mail Company can save partners and customers up to 90% of the costs of adding email and messaging products to their service portfolios. Second, we can provide them with more integrated functionality (such as virus scanning and calendaring), and more control over their email resources, than they could ever provide - or afford to provide - themselves. What makes us unique is our ability to customize the solution, and to deliver it over any platform and to any desktop.

What marketing methods are you employing?

We have moved to a near complete channel marketing strategy focusing on eight main communities - ASPs, CLECS, the wireless community, ISPs, consultants, telcos, cable service providers and general Internet/B2B solutions.  The continued growth of our company will be built on this 'brand behind the brand' strategy. 

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What type of support do you provide your channel partners?

First, it is important to realize that we have two main streams - enterprise and business partners.  I'll focus on our enterprise partners first.  With them, we say at the outset that they own the customer relationship. We are simply the bullet in the gun that gives their service more stickiness.  We exist in the background, sending their sales reps newsletters that provide expertise and value.  We contact senior account reps and update them on product enhancements.  We do lots and lots of phone work to make sure the relationship stays sound and they are happy and knowledgeable about our product.  Our goal, the entire focus of the company in fact, is making it easy for them to sell the ElectricMail service. I will always defer to the channel relationship to please them.

And how about the Business Partners?

To them, my main message is, "We take care of the headaches."  With our Business Partners, we play a role similar to the one played by a cellular phone carrier and its retailers. We provide the Business Partner with sales training, collateral material, and similar support to help them sell the service.  Then, once the Business Partner has signed up a customer, we send the monthly bills directly to the end-customer and a check to the Business Partner.  We will even put the Business Partner’s logo on the various Electric WebMail screens if they would like it.  Again, we want to do whatever is necessary to help our channel partners make more sales.

Any final thoughts?

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Just one more word on channels.  We believe that our current success is due to the growth of our channel model and that the future growth will always be connected to the development of our terrific relationships with our channel partners.  Our company is dedicated to promoting and fostering these relationships for continued success.

Iain Black, President and CEO, ElectricMail - As President & CEO of The Electric Mail Company, Iain Black is responsible for leading the company's corporate development, strategic direction and expansion. Mr. Black has extensive experience in the strategic development, management, marketing and financing of both public and private high-tech, entrepreneurial companies. Prior to his appointment at The Electric Mail Company, Mr. Black was President and CEO of a private consulting firm focused on deploying customer care for Internet companies. Before this, he served 18 months at Axion Internet Communications Inc., first as Vice President, Corporate Services, and then Chief Operating Officer, where he led a corporate turnaround from near-bankruptcy to sustained profitability.